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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 3, No. 250, 99-12-30Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 3, No. 250, 30 December 1999CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT POSTPONES BUDGET DEBATEThe deputychairman of the Armenian parliamentary Committee on Finance and Economics, Manvel Badeyan, told RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau on 28 December that the final draft of the 2000 budget will be submitted to the legislature in late January. The draft was originally submitted to deputies in early November but then withdrawn for amendments. Badeyan said the reason for the delay is that the Armenian government is keen to have a "realistic" budget but doesn't yet know how much the country will receive from international financial organizations. In particular, agreement has not yet been reached with the World Bank on the size of a Structural Adjustment Credit that is earmarked to cover much of the anticipated budget deficit. LF [02] RUSSIAN BORDER GUARDS SENTENCED FOR ARMENIAN SHOOTINGTwoRussian border guards were sentenced to jail terms of 14 and 15 years for indiscriminately opening fire on civilians in the north Armenian town of Gyumri in April, AP reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 15 April 1999). Two people were killed and a further nine wounded in the shooting. LF [03] AZERBAIJAN PROTESTS ARMENIAN SEISMIC MONITORING STATIONSAzerbaijan's Foreign Ministry on 27 December issued astatement condemned as a violation of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity Armenian plans to open a network of 150 seismic monitoring stations in Armenia and the unrecognized Armenian-populated Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, ANS TV reported. LF [04] GEORGIAN OFFICIAL DENIES CHECHEN FIGHTERS IN GEORGIANTERRITORYGeorgian Deputy Security Minister Levan Kenchadze on 29 December rejected as untrue claims by former Defense Minister Tengiz Kitovani that up to 1,500 Chechen fighters are using the Pankisi gorge in northern Georgia as a base, Caucasus Press reported. Earlier the same day, Kitovani said in Tbilisi that the Chechens are being allowed to move freely on Georgian territory and are planning to attack Russian troops based in Georgia. On 28 December, police in Tbilisi apprehended four people attempting to smuggle a large quantity of heroin from Pankisi. Georgian police believe the drug was processed in an underground facility in Chechnya controlled by Chechen field commanders. LF [05] TWELVE INDICTED FOR PLOTTING GEORGIAN COUPTwelve people,including a former senior Defense Ministry official, have been charged with conspiring to assassinate Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze in May of this year, Interfax and Caucasus Press reported on 28 December (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 24 and 26 May 1999). Seven people, including former Defense Ministry official Gudjar Kurashvili, have been arrested in connection with the planned coup, while a further five are still at large. The latter include former parliamentary deputy Boris Kakubava and Igor Giorgadze, ex- head of the Georgian Security Service, who is wanted for his alleged involvement in the August 1995 attempt to kill Shevardnadze. LF [06] PARTICIPANTS IN COMMEMORATION OF KAZAKH DEMONSTRATION FINEDAzat Party leader Hasen Qozhakhmet on 29 December said he andan unspecified number of others have been fined for participating in a gathering to commemorate those killed during the Almaty protest of 19 December 1986 against the appointment of an ethnic Russian as first secretary of the Communist Party of Kazakhstan, RFE/RL correspondents in Almaty reported. Qozhakhmet, who was imprisoned for his role in the 1986 protest, said the official explanation for the fines was that the gathering had not been sanctioned by the authorities. LF [07] KYRGYZSTAN'S ECONOMY STABILIZESPrime Minister AmangeldiMuraliev on 28 December said in Bishkek that his cabinet managed to increase tax revenues in 1999, improved the situation in the agricultural sector, and held inflation at 39 percent, Interfax reported. (The target for inflation was 15 percent). In addition, the country's trade deficit has been reduced from $229 million in 1998 to $80 million. The government has paid off its entire pension arrears and reduced wage arrears to public sector employees, according to RFE/RL's Bishkek bureau. LF [08] FORMER KYRGYZ PREMIER DENIES ROLE IN BUSINESSMAN'S MURDERIna letter published on 28 December in the government newspaper "Slovo Kyrgyzstana," Apas Djumagulov denies any connection with the March 1997 murder in Bishkek of his distant relative, businessman Yusup Kolbaev, RFE/RL's bureau in the Kyrgyz capital reported. Djumagulov, who is currently Kyrgyzstan's ambassador to Germany, said he will launch legal proceedings against those media outlets that implicated him in the killing. He is also suspected of involvement in a major corruption scandal (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 17 December 1999). LF [09] TWO SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR TAJIK COUP ATTEMPTA court in thenorthern Tajik city of Khujand on 28 December imposed death sentences on two participants in the failed November 1998 coup headed by former Tajik Army Colonel Mahmud Khudaiberdiev, Reuters and ITAR-TASS reported. A further 35 Khudaiberdiev supporters received prison sentences ranging from 9 to 21 years. LF [10] TAJIK OPPOSITION LEADER IN IRANDuring a one-week officialvisit to Tehran, United Tajik Opposition leader Said Abdullo Nuri met with President Mohammad Hatami and Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi, Asia Plus-Blitz reported on 29 December. The talks centered on political developments in Tajikistan, including preparations for the upcoming parliamentary elections, bilateral economic ties, and the overall political situation in Central Asia. All agreed that the conflict in Afghanistan should be resolved by peaceful means and through the participation of all Afghan political forces. LF [11] 'AND HE SHALL REIGN FOR EVER AND EVER...'Turkmenistan'sparliament approved an amendment to the country's constitution on 28 December allowing incumbent President Saparmurat Niyazov to remain president for an unlimited period, Reuters reported. The previous day, Niyazov had rejected the proposed amendment, hinting that he might not run for a further term in the presidential poll due in 2002 (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 28 December 1999). On 29 December, the U.S. State Department expressed regret at Turkmenistan's unwillingness to observe democratic norms, according to AP. Reuters quoted an unnamed Western diplomat as conceding that Niyazov can guarantee political stability but also noting that his continuation in office indefinitely will postpone both democratic and economic reforms in the country. Niyazov told law-makers on 29 December that no alternatives to the ruling Democratic Party will be allowed to exist during the next decade, according to Interfax. LF [12] TURKMENISTAN TO SWITCH TO LATIN ALPHABETNiyazov toldparliament deputies on 29 December that the country will replace the Cyrillic alphabet with the Latin one as of 1 January 2000, Interfax reported. Niyazov also called for broader ties between Turkmenistan and Russia, and assured Turkmenistan's ethnic Russian minority that they will not be subjected to harassment on ethnic or religious grounds. LF [13] UZBEK ELECTION RESULTS PUBLISHEDFollowing the second roundof voting on 26 December, 249 of the total 250 seats in the new Uzbek parliament have been filled, Asia Plus-Blitz reported on 27 December. The People's Democratic Party has 48 seats, the national democratic party Fidorkorlar 24, Vatan Tarakkiyoti 20, the Adolat social-democratic party 11, and the democratic party Milli Tiklanish 10. A further 110 deputies represent governing structures, and 16 others represent initiative groups. LF [B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[14] MILOSEVIC RESHUFFLES MILITARY COMMANDIn an apparent effortto shore up his personal power, Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic on 28 December made significant changes in the military's high command, Reuters reported. Among those promoted was General Vladimir Lazarevic, who commanded the Pristina Corps until its withdrawal in June and who has recently said that Yugoslav forces will return to Kosovo. He will now be deputy head of Yugoslavia's Third Army. General Milorad Obradovic, commander of the Second Army, also was increased in rank. His area of responsibilities includes Montenegro. PG [15] OPPOSITION GROUPS TO DISCUSS COMMON STRATEGYThe Alliancefor Change, the Serbian Renewal Movement, and two smaller opposition groups on 28 December agreed to meet on 10 January to discuss a common strategy against what they called their "common adversary" -- Yugoslav President Milosevic, AP reported. Some 10,000 opposition supporters gathered in Belgrade on 28 December for a rock concert to mark the new year three days early. PG [16] YUGOSLAV LAWYERS PROTEST DISMISSAL OF JUDGESThe SerbianChamber of Lawyers on 29 December said that a 21 December decision by the parliament to fire three judges had undermined the independence and impartiality of the country's judiciary, Reuters reported. "Those decisions are unconstitutional and unlawful," the statement continued. The dismissed judges are Slobodan Vucetic, a Serbian Constitutional Court judge; Zoran Ivosevic, a Serbian Supreme Court Judge; and Bozidar Prelevic, a judge in a Belgrade municipal court. PG [17] RUSSIA WON'T SELL ADVANCED WEAPONS TO BELGRADEYugoslavDefense Minister Predrag Bulatovic told the military weekly "Vojska" on 29 December that Moscow plans to upgrade its military cooperation with Belgrade but will not sell major new weapons systems to Yugoslavia "because of the internationally imposed arms embargo." In other comments, Bulatovic said that NATO was continuing what he called its "extended aggression against Yugoslavia" but said that Belgrade "will battle on the diplomatic as well as on other fields to persuade the international community that Kosovo is a part of Yugoslavia and Serbia." PG [18] CHINA MAY VETO EXTENSION OF KFOR BEYOND JUNE 2000ChineseForeign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said in Beijing on 28 December that China will decide "depending on what happens in Kosovo" as to whether it will support an extension of the KFOR mandate, Reuters reported. PG [19] EU PLANS TO SEND MORE FUEL TO YUGOSLAVIAAfter appeals bythe mayors of Nis and Pirot, the EU appears likely to increase deliveries of fuel to provide heat to Yugoslav civilians, Reuters reported on 28 December. The EU reportedly will send 38 fuel trucks rather than the eight earlier announced under the still controversial "Energy for Democracy" project. Jan Willen Blankert, deputy head of the European Commission delegation in Belgrade, said he hopes the EU will broaden the program further in January. PG [20] MONTENEGRIN AIDE SAYS 'FEDERAL STATE DOES NOT EXIST'MiodragVukovic, an advisor to Montenegrin President Milo Djukanovic, told Montenegrin television on 28 December that Montenegro will not participate in Yugoslav elections in the year 2000 because "the federal state does not exist," AP reported. "Only if we agree on future restructuring of a federal state can we think about participating in federal institutions, including elections." On 29 December, Yugoslav Prime Minister Momir Bulatovic accused the U.S. of pushing Montenegro toward declaring its independence from Yugoslavia, something Washington has repeatedly denied. Bulatovic said that the "anti-Yugoslav, noisy band" in Montenegro "has one single conductor -- the U.S. administration, which is behind all the moves with an apparent desire to destabilize Yugoslavia and its legal leadership." PG [21] BELGRADE EXPLOITING MAFIA CHARGES IN MONTENEGROMontenegrinofficials told Reuters on 28 December that Belgrade is exploiting Italian displeasure over the involvement of some Montenegrins in the mafia to undermine Podgorica's reputation in the West. The officials said all 27 deputies of the pro- Milosevic party in the Montenegrin parliament had printed copies of Italian charges against the republic's foreign minister a week ago on the very day he resigned. PG [22] DETAILS OF MONTENEGRIN HARD CURRENCY OFFERMontenegrinFinance Minister Miroslav Ivanisevic on 29 December said Podgorica will pay Yugoslav army officers residing in the republic with hard currency if the army provides goods of equal value to Montenegro, Reuters reported. At the same time, Ivanisevic said that the Montenegrin government has decided "to pay salaries to all employees in Montenegro in German marks." Both steps are designed to protect Podgorica from the inflation now ravaging the Yugoslav dinar, but it remains uncertain whether the Yugoslav Army in Montenegro will accept. PG [23] UN CHIEF SAYS KOSOVA VIOLENCE UNACCEPTABLEIn a report tothe UN Security Council, Secretary General Kofi Annan said progress has been made in Kosova over the last six months but that the amount of both general violence as well as violence against ethnic minorities remains unacceptably high, Reuters reported on 28 December. He called for strengthening the judiciary and penal systems and urged a "strong response" to counter problems involving "unofficial law-enforcement actors." PG [24] ARRESTS AND RELEASES IN KOSOVAKFOR on 28 December arrestedSava Matic, an ethnic Serb who is charged with war crimes during the recent conflict, Reuters reported. Matic was arrested in Orahovac, where more than a dozen other ethnic Serbs have been arrested in recent weeks. The local Serbian Orthodox bishop condemned the arrest. Meanwhile, on the same day, KFOR released four people who had been detained in connection with a bomb attack on a Serbian cafe. PG [25] SFOR GOES ON HEIGHTENED ALERT IN BOSNIAThe NATO-led SFOR on28 December announced that its forces have been put on heightened alert because of the possibility of terrorist attacks, Reuters reported. The SFOR command took this step after its soldiers found an unexploded bomb near an SFOR camp. PG [26] OSCE TO REMOVE 15 MUSLIM CANDIDATES FROM BOSNIAN ELECTORALLISTThe OSCE, which is in charge of organizing and monitoring elections in Bosnia, announced on 28 December that it has scratched 15 candidates of the ruling Muslim party from the list of candidates because of registration irregularities, AP reported. PG [27] BOSNIAN SERBS PLEAD NOT GUILTY AT HAGUE TRIBUNALTwo BosnianSerbs charged with war crimes, retired General Stanislav Galic and paramilitary leader Zoran Vukovic, on 29 December entered not guilty pleas at the international court in The Hague, Reuters reported. PG [28] CROATIAN OPPOSITION FORMS OWN ELECTION COMMISSIONSuspiciousthat the ruling party of late President Franjo Tudjman might "opt for manipulating election results," the leading opposition coalition announced on 28 December that it has formed its own electoral commission to monitor the upcoming vote, Reuters reported, citing bloc spokesman Tihomir Ladisic. PG [29] MACEDONIA SEIZED SERBIA-BOUND EXPLOSIVESThe Macedonianpolice on 29 December seized 13 metric tons of explosives the authorities said were bound for Serbia, Reuters reported. The police also arrested eight Macedonians and seven Yugoslav citizens, who have been charged with smuggling. PG [30] ALBANIANS CHOOSE ENVER HOXHA 'MAN OF CENTURY'According toletters sent into Tirana's independent daily "Koha Jone" since September, Albanians believe that former dictator Enver Hoxha was the most important figure in Albania in the 20th century, DPA reported on 29 December. PG [31] ALBANIA CRITICIZES BELGRADE, SEEKS CLOSE TIES WITH PODGORICAAlbanian Foreign Minister Paskal Milo on 28 December issued apublic warning to Belgrade against any attempts to return its forces to Kosova, dpa reported. At the same time, Milo criticized Athens for failing to discuss the property rights of ethnic Albanians in Greece. Meanwhile, Albanian Prime Minister Ilir Meta told "Koha Jone" that he hopes for closer ties with Montenegro. PG [32] ROMANIA INTRODUCES NEW TAX SYSTEM...The Romanian governmenton 29 December decided at an extraordinary meeting to slash corporate taxes, increase VAT, and simplify the tax system. Corporate taxes will be reduced from 38 to 25 percent in order to stimulate the economy and ensure accurate tax returns. In addition, companies that can prove investments and exports will benefit from a 10 and 5 percent tax reductions, respectively. Romania's VAT is to be reduced from 22 to 19 percent but will now apply across the board. At the same time, VAT will be increased on some consumer goods from 11 to 19 percent. However, no VAT will be paid on energy deliveries for home consumption until April 2000. As of 1 January, a global system of personal taxation on all earnings regardless of their source is to be introduced, bringing Romania into line with the system currently applied in the EU, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. [33] ...AND TAXES PENSIONSUnder the new taxation system,pensions that surpass the average national salary of 1.7 million lei ($94) are to be taxed, thus reducing the number of pensioners who receive their retirement benefits tax free. Labor and Social Affairs Ministry spokeswoman Simona Marinescu on 28 December said pensions will be increased by up to 60 percent in 2000. MS [34] ROMANIAN DEFENSE MINISTER RETURNS FROM MOSCOWOn his returnfrom a three-day visit to Moscow on 29 December, Defense Minister Victor Babiuc said he and his Russian counterpart, Igor Sergeev, discussed bilateral cooperation in the two countries' defense industries and a proposal that Russia repay its $90 million debt to Romania with military hardware deliveries. They also discussed the envisaged withdrawal of Russian troops from the Transdniester and Romania's preparations for integration into NATO. Babiuc said he did not "note opposition" from Sergeev to Romania's plans but added that "Russia is still a great power and I am under the impression that it is dissatisfied with the status that Western countries are conferring on her." MS [35] MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT RECEIVES CIS EXECUTIVE SECRETARYCISExecutive-Secretary Yurii Yarov met with Moldovan President Petru Lucinschi in Chisinau on 28 December to discuss ways to improve cooperation among CIS member-states, RFE/RL's Chisinau bureau reported. The meeting was part of the preparations for the CIS summit scheduled in January 2000. Lucinschi told Yarov that Moldova insists on the implementation of existing CIS agreements, and particularly on setting up a free trade zone that would eliminate trade barriers and double taxation. He said he "welcomes" the CIS Executive Committee decision to participate in the settlement of conflicts and sources of tension in the former Soviet Union. Lucinschi added that the committee's participation alongside the OSCE and other organizations in mediating Moldova's dispute with the Transdniester separatists would make an important contribution to finding a solution to the problem. MS [C] END NOTE[36] NEW ORTHODOXY?By Catherine CosmanA new post-Soviet orthodoxy emerged at a human rights seminar in Georgia in late November: The monopoly position of majority religious communities may take precedence over that of individuals protesting that monopoly. The seminar, organized by the Caucasus Institute for Peace, Democracy, and Development, also provided highlights of the human rights situation in Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia. Georgia's active NGO community (at least that based in Tbilisi) has made the most strides in communicating its concerns to the government. Azerbaijan's parliament in December enacted a tough new law on the media. And in Armenia, the government maintains tight control over official information, resulting in a weak independent media that engages in wishy-washy journalism. Representatives from all three south Caucasus countries agreed that their elections are now mere "balloting charades." Georgian journalists, for example, told of the mayor's successful challenger in Kutaisi being wounded by mysterious assailants a few days before the elections and of wholesale vote buying. Nevertheless, foreign election monitors still spend a lot of time and treasure in what many local observers consider often academic exercises to gauge election fairness. Participants laughed bitterly at their judiciary "systems," with the Armenian representatives saying that "justice" is measured only by bags of money. All participants agreed that police brutality hits hard and that perpetrators are rarely, if ever, brought to justice. As for conditions in prison, the less said the better. While most speakers agreed there are few, if any, prisoners of conscience, today people are still imprisoned on political grounds--most flagrantly in Azerbaijan, where some 900 are held in appalling conditions. It should be added, however, that many political prisoners in Georgia and Azerbaijan were also implicated in coup attempts. As for the lamentable socio-economic situation in their countries, seminar participants estimated that more than half of their work force is unemployed. People are embittered at displays of ill-gotten gains by local elites and "businessmen" who stole state resources and now produce nothing. Despite staunch official opposition, teachers in Kutaisi have formed an independent trade union and gotten seven months of back wages. Many men, trying to earn a living wage, have left Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan to find work in Russia. The money these workers send home often equals or surpasses these countries' official state budgets, giving Russia a potential major economic lever. Freedoms of speech, press, and assembly differ considerably among these three countries. Georgia is the most liberal on freedom of the press, although the government retains a potential repressive arsenal, particularly for slander of the president. Major demonstrations, however, are either not allowed in Georgia or are rapidly dispersed, perhaps because such protests brought down the previous government. Armenian journalists claimed there is no direct official censorship but admitted to much "wishy-washy" reporting. The new Azerbaijani media law empowers the government to close media outlets without going to court. Indeed, the Azerbaijani government recently closed the independent Sara TV station on the obscure legal grounds that it is owned by a foreigner. With regard to religion, the range of views was wider. Participants concurred that their governments disapprove of foreign missionary activity, especially by Jehovah's Witnesses, Krishnaites, Scientologists, and Adventists. Some activists, particularly from Armenia, seemed to share their government's view that such proselytizing goes against "national traditions." Azerbaijanis noted a Lutheran pastor had been expelled from their country this summer. And Georgian activists detailed repressive actions against Protestant groups, such as book burnings and a current court case to revoke the registration of the Jehovah's Witnesses. In all three countries, the issue of state registration of religious groups loomed large. Azerbaijani activists told how their country had moved away from the relative liberalism of the early 1990s toward increasing barriers to religious activity by restricting registration. These registration restrictions are also being applied to some Islamic groups. In addition, young women who wear head scarves for identity card photos are now being denied passports, even though this does not violate the law. Armenian participants described how the Armenian Apostolic Church played the role of government at various times in Armenian history, and now it is feared that the Church manipulates this tradition to gain monopoly power. In Georgia, only the Georgian Orthodox Church is exempt from the registration requirement, while other religious groups find it difficult to obtain. Disagreement peaked about whether to defend the legal rights of a young Moscow artist who protested what he considers the cultural monopoly of the Russian Orthodox Church by defacing icon prints. The artist faces three years in prison for the "incitement of religious discord." One young Russian Orthodox journalist from Azerbaijan said she was deeply offended by the artist's actions and saw no reason to defend his legal rights. Taking the opposite tack, a Georgian journalist from the Liberty Institute said, although he did not approve of the artist's actions, he would defend his right to do so. One Armenian participant said the artist, who happened to be an ethnic Armenian, had engaged in simple hooliganism. During the heated discussion, many journalists and human rights activists defended an emerging religious orthodoxy as fervently as the Soviet government had enforced atheism. The author is deputy director of the RFE/RL Communications Division. 30-12-99 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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